Question

due monday by 11:59pm points 5 submitting a text entry box available oct 10 at 12am - dec 18 at 11:59pm 1. what are the first two trophic levels in an ecosystem? 2. last class, what were the organisms from each of those first two trophic levels? 3. predict the total biomass of catfish if the algal biomass is 5 g. 4. define the 10% rule.

Explanation:

1. The first trophic level in an ecosystem is the producers (usually plants or algae that convert sunlight into energy via photosynthesis). The second trophic level is the primary consumers, which are herbivores that eat the producers.
2. Since the reference to "last class" is not provided with context, it's assumed organisms in an ecosystem include producers, consumers (primary, secondary, etc.), and decomposers.
3. Predicting total biomass depends on many factors like the type of ecosystem, availability of resources. But generally, biomass of producers is higher than that of primary - consumers in a stable ecosystem.
4. The 10% rule states that only about 10% of the energy or biomass is transferred from one trophic level to the next. If the algal biomass (producer) is 5 g, and catfish are primary - consumers, the catfish biomass would be 10% of 5 g, which is 0.5 g.

Answer:

1. Producers, Primary consumers
2. Producers, consumers, decomposers
3. Biomass of producers is usually higher than primary - consumers, but depends on ecosystem - specific factors.
4. The 10% rule means only about 10% of energy or biomass is transferred between trophic levels. Catfish biomass is 0.5 g.